Who needs midi-chlorians when you have the power of AR and a rolled up piece of paper?
I think at one point everyone dreams of wielding the awesome power of a lightsaber. An elegant weapon for a more civilized age, the kyber crystal-powered blades are arguably the most recognizable item from the Star Wars universe, serving as the primary weapon for the both the noble Jedi and nefarious Sith. As cool as the glowing sabers are however, they are the furthest things from realistic. So if you were looking forward to a future of filled with glowing neon sword fights, you may be waiting quite awhile.
In the meantime, why not practice your technique with your own augmented reality lightsaber via InstaSaber. Developed by app developer 2020CV, Instasaber utilizes AR technology to turn a simple piece of paper into your very own lightsaber to swing around. After installing and launching InstaSaber on your iPhone, simply hold up a letter sized piece of paper rolled to 1.25 inches in diameter. Then stand in awe as a mystical illuminating blade emits from your paper hilt. Once you’re warmed up, record all the action and share your “skills” with fellow nerf herders.
InstaSaber is available now for free on IOS, but there is a $0.99 upgrade available that removes all ads, extend the max recording length and enable different effects such as blade color adjustment, the pitch of the blades sound effects and even add double-sided blades for a real Darth Maul vibe.
Instasaber was built on Apple’s CoreML platform alongside the Metal 3D graphics API and features some impressive motion tracking capabilities. Throughout the experience the blade constantly remains fixated on top of the paper hilt even during sudden, rapid movements. Of course that is during ideal conditions for the app such as dim lighting and when the rolled up paper is fully visible in front of the camera.
Star Wars has been invading AR on a large scale this past year, having already released various other experiences and applications from its Google Pixel AR stickers, to Lenovo’s Star Wars: Jedi Challenges AR headset. While InstaSaber may not be an officially sanctioned piece of Star Wars content, it’s
This marks yet another Star Wars-themed AR experience available to the public, following previous ventures such as the Google Pixel’s Star Wars AR stickers, as well as Lenovo’s Star Wars: Jedi Challenges AR headset.